Ten Ideas for Drawing Near to God

March 2, 2015 By Stanton Lanier 2 Comments

Click above to listen to the title track Draw Near from my third album. If you enjoy, check out the CD or MP3 Album, Sheet Music, or visit iTunes, Amazon, or Spotify).

Are you feeling near to God or distant from God right now?

As I wrote this question I was reminded that in my faith journey, one or the other is true. For me, answering “somewhere in between” is not an honest answer. In reality, I either lean toward feeling near or distant. Some spiritual word pictures for “Near” could be Sanctuary, Mountain Top, or Still Waters. Some for “Distant” could be Desert, Valley, or Stormy Seas.

In this post I am challenging myself to name ten ideas which help with drawing near to God. I hope some of these will help you in this quest, or at least trigger your own idea to apply. These are in no particular order, and are worded as personal affirmations…

1) I will meditate on James 4:8 “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.”
2) I will practice child-like faith, giving a random act of kindness or a hug to someone.
3) I will ask God to show me how much He loves me, and watch to see what happens.
4) I will unplug from technology for five minutes to pray for two and listen for three.
5) I will surrender a desire or issue to God, and ask for His wisdom and direction.
6) I will share extravagant love with someone, by asking for or giving forgiveness.
7) I will speak words of life and encouragement to someone who could use a lift.
8) I will pause to count my blessings, instead of focusing on my frustrations.
9) I will serve someone through a hospital visit, a warm meal, or other special need.
10) I will listen to Scripture inspired piano to experience God’s presence.

Sometimes I need to focus more on Being (pursuing God to know Him better and listening for instruction), and sometimes I need to focus more on Doing (giving God’s love, grace and forgiveness to others). Practicing being and doing draws me nearer to God, and then He fulfills His wonderful promise to draw near to me.

How is God inviting you to draw near to Him?

The Story Behind My Song “First Love”

February 11, 2015 By Stanton Lanier Leave a Comment

Click above to listen to First Love (Revised) from the new album Treasures of Peace: The Stanton Lanier Collection. If you enjoy, check out the CD or MP3 Album, or visit iTunes, Amazon, or Spotify).

What comes to mind when you hear the words “First Love?”

I think these two words draw us in because we think back to a memory of love. For example, basketball was my “first love.” How would you fill in the blank? “__________” was my first love. Or, maybe we remember our first girlfriend or boyfriend as our “first love.” With this being Valentine’s week, I think about how my wife is my “first love” because we share the truest, deepest sense of this, a lifelong commitment to love and respect each other through life’s ups and downs.

When I wrote the song First Love in 2003-2004 (for the album Draw Near), I was thinking about all the meanings behind this. Yet, most of all, I was thinking about how God first loves us. I cannot earn His love. He offers it as a free gift, and grows this in me as I surrender my heart to Him. Then, last summer when I was composing a new, revised version for Treasures of Peace: The Stanton Lanier Collection, I added inspiration from Psalm 63 and the phrase “your love is better than life,” referring to God’s love for me.

As you listen to this track, you will hear the new (2014) opening and closing melodies inspired by Psalm 63, and the original (2004) middle section with verse and chorus, inspired by 1 John 4. These references are down below.

How could you apply “First Love” in a fresh way this Valentine’s Day?

“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love… Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:16, 19 (NIV)

“You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.” Psalm 63:1-4 (NIV)

A Valentine Love Song Just for You

February 6, 2015 By Stanton Lanier 8 Comments

Instead of the typical free music stream, for this post I am providing you with the Pure Fountain love song music video down below. If you enjoy, check out the CD or MP3 Album, or Sheet Music (or visit iTunes, Amazon , Spotify, Pandora, etc.).

Have you ever had a love song written just for you?

With one week until February 14th, this question came to mind: Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all had a love song written just for us? I’ve got some good news — I think we do.

My worst Valentine memory was the year I forgot my wife was preparing a candle lit dinner for two. Ouch. That one really hurt. Sometimes I can still feel like I am making up for this mistake that happened twenty years ago (my wife has forgiven me, and yes, she still loves me!). One of our family’s best in recent years was cooking a gourmet dinner to enjoy together. There are many sweet Valentine memories filled with love and smiles.

In my brokenness, I frequently feel like I need to “earn” my wife’s love. It becomes conditional. If I “do this” or “don’t do that” then she will love me more. If I am not careful, I can also begin thinking incorrectly that God will love me more based on what I do or don’t do.

Pure Fountain is probably my favorite of three instrumental love songs I have composed (Captivating and More Precious are the other two). When these Scripture inspired piano melodies were born, I was writing them for my wife, but I was inspired by God’s unconditional love for me. His forgiveness, love and acceptance are not based on my performance, but on His grace.

So, read the few phrases below from Song of Solomon Chapter 4 (taken from The Message). Then, watch for them in the Pure Fountain love song video. Receive this as your love song — God’s love song, music, and words written just for you.

Dear lover and friend,
you’re a secret garden,
a private and PURE FOUNTAIN.

A garden fountain,
sparkling and splashing…

You’ve captured my heart.
I stay until dawn breathes its light
and night slips away.

Body and soul you are PARADISE.
One look my way and…
I was hopelessly in love!

How did this speak to your heart?